This Old House and Updates

Wow, has it really been over a week? Time has just flown this week and I apologize for not getting on here more often. I have the garage still torn up as we gut and re-do, kids busy in school and plenty of homework and news from Afghanistan. Today, you can find a few updates here and a new, old layout.. (I'll explain).

Morton Updates:

1. We finally heard from Drew this past week!! Drew is a good friend of our family and deployed this summer to Afghanistan with the US Army National Guard. We are very proud of him for doing this and we are so grateful for the freedoms we still have as American citizens, which he protects daily with his life! He left behind a pregnant wife and young son and will miss the birth of his daughter while overseas. He is an extension of our family and we pray for he and his family constantly while he is there fighting for the next year.

Out on patrol. I am so grateful for his friends who are willing
to take pictures for me and especially for him!

This is the market just out the "front door" where he is stationed.
The soldier pictured is standing just outside the gates, looking out.

 All we can say is keep sending us photos in cyberspace and hurry home!!!

2. General zaniness abounds at our house. Brook is studying Utah this year, while Aidan's class is currently refreshing what they learned in kindergarten as far as colors and service personnel relationships (don't ask me where that came from). So, dreaded math and spelling lists mixed in with a little salt dough is EVERYWHERE in our house! We've had one field trip so far (Aidan) and one more at the first of October (Brook). It seems things are ramping up even faster this year and I'm not sure I'm ready! (Too late, needless to say.) We had so much fun being crazy together as a family while at Paige & Zac's wedding this month so I thought I would share one of the photos we took at the photo booth. (If you ever get the chance to do this, DON"T PASS IT UP! It is just too much fun! I think the picture says it all.

3. This Old House is one of my favorite magazines to read, based on the television series, which you can find on your local PBS or online. I love reading about all the DIY projects and getting sucked into just how "easy" or "cheap" something can be. (Note to self, use sarcasm appropriately here.) Love the projects and ideas - but they NEVER turn out to be cheap OR easy for me!! I started this layout a few years ago and just finished it last night. I went through a phase where I wanted to get caught up so I faked it and cut the pictures and papers for the layout and put them together but left all the journalling, titles and embellishments off for another time. Seemed like a great idea at the time but now I just have a bunch of unlabeled photos in books rather than a box. I don't recommend this method for everyone!! LOL.

Anyhoo, these are pictures of our first house. It was a 1934 farmhouse my Grandma inherited from my Great (Great!) Aunt and we later purchased. So nostalgic to look back at those times. Things were different, sure, (jobs, cars, kids) but the funny thing is thinking about who I thought I was then and where I thought I was going.... and thinking about who I am now and where I am going. Some are the same. Many are different. I think I may add a little hidden journalling about that.. but I'll leave that for later!

Warm wishes,

Supplies: Everything on this is retired Close To My Heart from a few years ago. You can find the pewter brads here, Colonial White Waxy Flax here, and the Dark Chocolate Stripe Grosgrain here. Oh, and don't forget the extra fine tip Sharpie!